What Paulinho Has to Do to Win a Regular Starting Place at Tottenham

Before the rumours of Gareth Bale's move from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid went from laughable to all too real, Paulinho became Spurs' record transfer signing. 

Fans who had been watching the Confederations Cup were enraptured. Brazil had won the tournament and Paulinho had been among their best players. Two goals in four games and a Castrol Index rating of 8.82 promised big things. 

In January this year, Paulinho was seemingly one of the players on the auction block at White Hart Lane. After the window closed, it emerged that any moves for the Brazilian were put on hold by his wife's pregnancy. 

According to UOL Esporte (h/t Paul Gorst of Metro.co.uk), Paulinho admitted in the early days of February that he had been "close to leaving" the club and that he does "not know if next season I will continue here or no."

Speculation continues that this will be the last season for Paulinho at Tottenham. 

He began the 2014 pre-season later than any other Spurs player, which is a significant disadvantage under any new coach, let alone one who places so much emphasis on physical preparation. 

That would explain his struggles early in the season, but he has made 11 unremarkable appearances in 2015. Surely his fitness has reached acceptable levels by now? 

The Telegraph suggested in September that Paulinho had yet to recover from the mental trauma of the World Cup. Brazil, hosts and favourites to win the tournament, were destroyed by Germany 7-1, and that match left deep scars on the players involved. 

Again, this is a possible explanation, but it fails to illuminate his poor showings last season. 

It was suspected by some that Paulinho was "holding back" for fear of injury in the lead-up to the World Cup. Certainly many of his performances lacked conviction. 

It seems, then, that a combination of factors have conspired against Paulinho reaching his best, and of course, he would not be the first Brazilian to struggle to adapt to life in England.

Juan Roman Riquelme described Paulinho as a Brazilian Frank Lampard. His regular goalscoring for both Corinthians and Brazil seemed to resonate with that description.

So many of his goals came from perfectly timed runs and a combination of natural athleticism and hard-refined technique. 

It seemed that he would be perfectly suited to the Premier League, but Paulinho's brief moments of excellence have been so fleeting in his first two seasons. 

All is not lost for the Brazilian midfielder. 

To be fair to him, Paulinho has had some solid games for Spurs. His backheel winner against Cardiff was probably his finest moment, but he has not looked entirely out of place in the Premier League, although his fitness evidently has been a problem at times. 

After Spurs' defeat to Besiktas in the Europa League in December, after yet another wretched display, Mousa Dembele had seemingly proved he was no longer capable of the standard required from Mauricio Pochettino. 

Now Dembele is once again a valued member of Spurs' squad. He has not cracked the strongest lineup, but he has been a regular option from the substitutes bench. In just a few months, Dembele has revitalised his reputation. 

The same can be true of Paulinho. 

Unlikely to be selected in Brazil's squad for the Copa America, Paulinho faces a full off-season with no international distractions.

This is his chance to force his way back into the reckoning at Spurs. It's easy to forget this is a good player playing poorly rather than a player who simply has run out of talent. 

Many fans have had little patience for Paulinho, remarkably little given the obvious comparisons with fellow transfer "flop" Roberto Soldado, but he is far more likely to find his best form quickly than the lost and listless Spaniard. 

Paulinho's first goal for Spurs was a header that capped a quick break. Ghosting into the box, he found himself unmarked and powered his header down and into the net—copybook stuff. Curiously, his first goal for Corinthians was almost identical. 

He scored headers, poacher's goals, long-range screamers and tap-ins. Thirty-four in all for one of Brazil's biggest clubs demonstrates that he is certainly capable of contributing. 

Pochettino must recognise how he works best and not ask him to play a mainly defensive role. While he is capable of breaking up play to an extent, it is not the focus of his game nor the reason Spurs paid £17 million for his services.

This comparison of Ryan Mason and Paulinho shows how different the two Spurs midfielders are despite some superficial similarities. Mason is capable of a deeper role, aggressively stopping opposition attacks before springing the ball forward. He gets forward nicely but is not an instinctive goalscorer. 

Paulinho lacks Mason's toughness, but he is a more natural player and far more reliable in scoring situations.

Spurs don't have the depth of midfielders that they had only 12 months ago. Players like Gylfi Sigurdsson, Lewis Holtby and Sandro have moved on, while Etienne Capoue seems likely to also depart. 

If Pochettino can help Paulinho overcome the physical and mental difficulties that have slowed his progress in England and find a way to deploy him in his most effective role, he can become a regular option in his first-team.